Dragonfire and Coldharbour Blood
by just a guy 42
Summary: Dragonborn x Serana. Will have their adventures during tail end of Dawnguard and onwards. Finished Dawnguard arc! There's more info on the character inside. He's a good guy. Some things are different to try and be a bit more realistic or interesting. I'll divide these into arcs for different quests and adventures that they undertake. Strong language and sexual themes.
1. Dawnguard Beginning: Injured

**SPOILERS: IF YOU WANT TO LEARN ABOUT THE CHARACTER AS YOU READ SKIP THE INFO SECTION**

**Character Background:**

Light armor/shield/one handed build. Can use a bow and is decent at magic.

Nord, brownish hair, short. Tan and semi-muscular but nothing ridiculous. This guy is no Jonathan Joestar.

Tends to be Neutral Good

Past is to be fleshed out

**Character Factions Relations:**

Supported the Empire in Civil War.

Leader of College of Winterhold

Went to the Bard's College

Leader of Companions

Destroyed Dark Brotherhood and kind of knows Thieves' Guild

Finished main quest and refused to kill Paarthunax

Pro Dawnguard

**END OF SPOILERS**

Important Note:

I do not own any of this stuff. All of it belongs to Bethesda, Todd, etc. This will contain spoilers for the plotlines of the game. Enjoy.

* * *

_Somewhere between Solitude and Whiterun_

The wagon wheel hit yet another large rock which made Tucker smack his head on the floor of the wagon yet again. He grunted with frustration.

"Gods damn it, why don't these things come with pillows?"

Serana looked guilty down at him from her seat. Tucker was sprawled across the aisle of wagon trying to fall asleep to help his wounds heal faster.

"Are you sure you don't want to take a moment to rest? We can hold for a day or two maybe."

"No, no. I'm fine. I just love banging my head post building falling on me."

"It fell on me too to be fair."

"Yeah, but you heal fast. I take a little bit longer."

Serana shrugged her shoulders.

"It's really okay if you want to stop. We're almost to Whiterun. Don't you have a house there? Actually, don't you have a house in every city?"

Tucker tried to position himself so the sun wasn't bearing directly down on him while still being able to talk to Serana. He failed.

"Technically, only five out of the four hold capitals. But those are houses are mainly so that my housecarls have somewhere to stay other than the keeps."

"Oh, how wrong of me. I forgot that you have all those houses for charity and never use them yourself." Serana said with a raised eyebrow.

Tucker managed to flash a cocky grin at her.

"Okay, so there are some side benefits to being a thane in every hold. Is it so wrong that I get a few luxuries for my noble service to the people of Skyrim."

"When you feel you have to tell everybody you meet that you have a house in every major city, yes."

Tucker narrowed his eyes at her for a half second before closing his eyes once more in a desperate attempt to avoid the world that was far too bright today.

"Ugh. I think I finally know how you feel. This sunlight is killing me."

"Absolutely, it must be so horrible for you. It's just literally killing me. I couldn't even imagine what you must be going through"

Serana smirked to herself. She appreciated that he wasn't bothered by her vampirism. He was pretty much the only person she knew that happily made jokes about it with no ill will intended. It made things extra interesting and gave him more options for jokes as far as he was concerned. Plus the added benefit of having a friend with heightened senses, strength, agility, and a great appreciation for beautiful Skyrim nights.

Tucker let out a laugh at her comment, jarring her from her ruminations. It was a big booming laugh that made you expect a half-orc, half-giant to have let it out.

"HA! I do appreciate your concern madam."

He flashed a lop-sided smirk at her before rolling over to try and avoid the sun better. Serana's brow furrowed in worry.

"Really Tucker. It's okay if you want to stop for a day or two. We have the bow and there's no point to hell-riding to Fort Dawnguard just for you to die on the way or feint at the door."

Tucker rolled over and sat up a bit.

"Really Serana. I'm okay. See? I can even sit up. I just love to be dramatic. And I just want to get the bow to as safe a place as possible. I'll probably spend at least a day or two resting and making plans with Isran once we get there."

"No. Probably isn't good enough. You almost died today and you are not going to say probably then go dashing off in the morning. Promise me you'll rest."

Tucker could see the steel in Serana's eyes. A part of him considered arguing but he could see a bit of worry in her eyes. Besides, she had a point. There would be no point to charging into battle with the injuries he sustained. His bones were still mending and if they weren't properly healed he would risk dying within the first few minutes of a fight with a vampire.

"Alright. I promise I will rest for at least a day or two."  
"Even if Isran pushes you?"

"Even if Isran pushes me."

The hard edge in Serana's eyes softened and she smiled at him. He smiled back.

"Good, you better not die on me any time soon."

Tucker smiled at her words.  
"Who? Me? What would even make you think such a thing could happen?"

Serana rolled her eyes as he put on his most innocent face.

"I didn't magically forget what you did back at the temple."

"Oh, you noticed that did you?"

"Well when you scream "lookout," tackle me to the ground, and shield me with your body as a roof collapses the tackled person tends to notice."

Tucker awkwardly rubbed his neck.

"Yeah, that makes sense."

"You know that along with my dislike of the sun I have the side benefit of being a bit more durable than you. And I heal faster. You didn't have to do that."

"I know." Tucker paused. "I just…. couldn't help it when I saw you in danger."

Tension started to seep into the air between the two at his words. The only interruption being the clop of hooves on the road and the carriage driver humming to himself in a desperate effort to be uninvolved with these two. Serana was the first to speak whilst trying to stifle a blush.

"O-Oh, I mean ... that's very sweet, um, I mean kind-"

"I-I mean not that it was for y-you specifically. I just saw a comrade in arms in danger and jumped…. I-I'd have done it for anybody." Tucker awkwardly interrupted whilst fighting down a blush of his own.

Neither one of them looked at each other.

"Oh! Of course! Good, because I would have done the same. You just beat me to the punch. Um... good job comrade."

Serana awkwardly punched Tucker's shoulder which caused him to wince. Serana withdrew her hand.

"Damn. I'm sorry."

"No, you're fine! I should probably…. Uh ... rest anyways."

"Yeah! That's a good idea. I'll keep watch. And, thanks for watching my back by the way."

"No prob. Same to you."

Tucker rolled over to face away from Serana. Serana pulled her hood a bit lower and started looking around the cart as they continued to look around the road. Both desperate to put the awkward conversation to an end.

The carriage driver sighed to himself. He'd taken the Dragonborn on carriage rides with his other companions before. None of them had been as damned awkward as he was with this lady. Gods, if the Dragonborn had found a lover it'd be the juiciest piece of gossip in all of Skyrim. News of the Empire's recent victory and the Civil War's end would pale in comparison to this news. It would probably even beat the news of those vampire attacks and that Dawnguard lot that had just started up. What strange times they were living in.

* * *

There it is. Chapter 1. Hope you like it. Idk how to format this or where all I want to take this so for now I'm just gonna write it through the battle at Harkon's castle. If you have anything you'd like to say please feel free to leave a review or PM me or something. I'm hoping to get this to at least a few chapters/arcs long. If you notice any issues in the writing PLEASE TELL ME. I want to write good so don't feel like you're being nitpicky or mean. I gladly welcome criticism. Doesn't mean I always follow it though. If you want me to change Serana's name to Care Bear or example, likely not. But if you notice I'm misspelling her name or you think I'm making them sound like 5 year olds, I'll likely fix that. Thanks for reading. These notes will be far shorted in future chapters. Thank you for your patience. Have a good day.


	2. Debriefing

**Disclaimer: **Don't own it. Not mine. Enjoy

* * *

The cart came to a sudden stop waking Tucker as he felt his head somehow hit the floor of the cart again.

"Gods DAMN IT."

The carriage driver had the decency to seem a bit guilty.

"Sorry Dragonborn but we're here."

Tucker sighed and stood up.

"You're fine. I'm just a bit grouchy."

"He's always like this" Serana chimed in with a glib smile.

Tucker glanced at her tiredly with a huge fake smile.  
"Thank you Serana."

He turned back to the driver and handed him some extra coins. The driver held his hands out to reject the money.

"Oh no Dragonborn, I could nev-"

"Just take the coins Bjorn. And how many times have I told you to call me Tucker?"

"Dragonborn, I couldn't-"

"Seriously or I'm gonna start shouting. You can guess which version of shouting I'll be doing."

Bjorn smiled and took the money.

"Well thank you Tucker."

"No problem. Come on Serana, let's get moving before I throw up in the cart."

Serana was already out of the cart and waiting for Tucker with arms outstretched to help him down.

"Please, I can get down myse-"

Tucker paused mid sentence as he saw Serana's eyes harden again. He took her hands and she helped him out of the cart.

"Fine, you win. Normally I would not suffer this kind of indignity since I am a grown man-"

"Oh, shut up, you didn't mind when I helped you into the cart."

Serana earned a chuckle from Bjorn at that. The sight of the young woman practically lifting the Dragonborn and gently laying him into the bottom of the cart was a sight not often seen. Tucker took notice of the chuckle.

"Ha, ha, harty har har. A building fell on me. Of course I'd need help getting in."

"Oh come on grouchy. We've got aways to go now. Here, put your arm around my shoulder."

Tucker didn't even bother to argue and slung his arm around her shoulder. Once again, Serana used her inhuman strength to practically carry him one-handed. Of course she let his feet touch the ground so he could feel the pride of mostly walking himself though she was carrying the majority of his bodyweight. She knew if she fully carried him he would resist. Damned nords and their stubbornness and pride.

They managed to get to the Fort just as the sun started to set. Serana could feel her strength growing and Tucker felt even lighter than before. Gods she loved the night time. She and Tucker usually travelled at night time since he knew it was easier for her. Today they only rode in the day because of how important their cargo was. Auriel's bow. This thing was the key to the prophecy her father was obsessed with. Though she wished that Tucker had taken some time to rest she understood that Fort Dawnguard was probably the safest place for the bow as of right now. Though Lydia was a fierce warrior and the Whiterun guards were noble warriors she knew Tucker wouldn't want to risk the danger to any innocents that wanted no part in this war. Enough people had suffered as far as he was concerned.

The guards at the gate started to shout as they saw the two hobbling towards them. She could hear crossbows being positioned on them. Despite knowing that these were Tucker's friends she always feared that one day they would kill her. The way they talked about all vampires as being monsters just set her on edge. How long was it before she outlived her usefulness and was put down like the rest of her kind? She knew Tucker would never allow that though she had her doubts at first.

He was an odd man, despite joining a group of vampire hunters he harbored no ill will or hatred of vampires at all. He hated the group of vampires that had been terrorizing the people of Skyrim and hated any vampire that did such monstrous things but there was no hatred of vampires purely for being a vampire. It was all based on their actions. And what's more, he had no fear. Even the Dawnguard, famed vampire hunters who were unafraid to do combat with a vampire, were scared of her. She knew they weren't scared to cross blade with her but her presence made them uneasy and they kept their distance. Almost as if they were afraid she would pounce on them and drink them dry with no warning. Without a sword between them and her or a crossbow at the ready they showed their fear of her kind.

Tucker didn't though. Here he was with his arm wrapped around her shoulder, putting most of his weight on her, with his neck fully exposed. No fear, no hint of it. It wasn't even him hiding his fear and acting confident. She could just feel his calm radiating out as if she were just another person. There was nothing there but trust. It made her feel good. She had felt like any non-vampire would see her as a monster and unfortunately, most vampires she knew did act like monsters. Tucker had even offered her the chance to feed on him if she desperately needed it. She had refused, of course, but she could tell that if she ever did truly need it he would let her.

Her musings were cut short by a familiar sharp bark.

"WHO GOES THERE! WE CAN SEE YOUR EYES AND I SWEAR TO STENDARR THAT A BOLT WILL BE BETWEEN THEM UNLESS YOU ANSWER US!"

"By Kynareth Isran, calm your crazy ass down!" Tucker yelled back.

"Tucker! And that thing. What's going on? Why are you here so late?"

"We've got some important cargo! It guarantees us victory! You wanna let us in?"

There was a pause. Tucker guessed that Isran was weighing out whether or not Serana had turned him and the two had come to drink the Dawnguard dry in a daring two-man frontal assault.

"Get those doors open now! Keep an eye out for any bloodsuckers that might have followed them here! If they've got that kind of cargo an attack could come any minute!"

The gate opened and the pair came in, Tucker still on Serena's shoulder to prevent heroically collapsing in front of his fellow vampire hunters. Isran took notice with only mild disdain on his face which Tucker took as progress.

"Alright, it sounds like you've got quite a story judging from how you look and that giant bow on your back."

Isran nodded at the large bow strapped to Tucker's back, although it was wrapped in some silks so that nobody could see what it was.

"It is but we should talk somewhere more private about it all. This is some world-ending information."

Isran nodded sagely.

"I was thinking that same thing. Guards! Night is falling and with it the bloodsucking fiends strength increases! Keep an eye out, see anything suspicious, put a bolt in it and we'll ask it questions in the morning."

With that Isran led the way into Fort Dawnguard.

* * *

_Fort Dawnguard Interrogation Room_

"This is as private a place as we can get. Nobody will be around here. Now if that thing will just set you down and leave we can talk."

Tucker's eyes seemed to flicker at this.

"No."

Isran crossed his arms.

"No?"

"You heard me. No, she is staying here. She's the reason I was even able to make it back in one piece. She's just been just as important to this mission as me. She deserves to be here."

Isran's eyes blazed in turn but he could see that Tucker wasn't backing down. Serana could feel something inside of her flutter in appreciation for Tucker's words. She really didn't care if she was allowed into the clubhouse or not but Tucker cared a ton. Finally Isran uncrossed his arms and took a seat.

"Fine. She hasn't had any incidents so far and, even if I think your trust is greatly misplaced, I'll allow it."

Serana sat Tucker down in a chair and took a seat herself. Tucker then began to fill Isran in on the prophecy, how the bow was the key to ending the tyranny of the sun, Harkon's obsession with the prophecy, how this bow was what he needed to achieve it, and how this bow was likely the only thing that could stop him. Serana noticed that Tucker left out the part about her blood being essential to the prophecy. Isran's face went from its normal grim, to grimmer, to a level of grim that Tucker never thought possible, and then to a bit of a softer vicious happiness at the realization that this bow could kill Harkon.

"So, this bow is the key to the prophecy? So long as we keep it away from Harkon he can't do anything?"

"Yes."

"But you're also saying that it could be the key to killing him so we should bring it as close to him as possible and kill him with it?"

Tucker rubbed his neck a little awkwardly.

"Yes."

"So, if this attack fails, and he gains the bow he will be able to destroy the sun?"

"Well, not quite. He would need the blood of a pure vampire."

"Isn't he a pure vampire?"

"Well yes but it needs to be a female one."

Tucker braced himself for what was to come.

"A female one. Like that." He gestured to Serana.

Tucker hesitated. He knew that Isran would refuse to launch the attack if it meant Harkon would have everything he needed but he couldn't out Serana. He was shocked when Serana spoke up.

"Yes. My father would need my blood to use the bow to destroy the sun."

Isran put his hand on his chin and stared at Serana. Tucker had a bad feeling of where this was going.

"Well, if she's the key to using the bow. Then she will simply have to stay here while we use it to destroy Harkon."

Tucker was shocked. Isran knew that one of the greatest dangers to the sun was sitting in the same room as them and did not suggest destroying it?

"Wait, you're not gonna suggest killing her?"

Serana shot Tucker a look. Tucker, of course rushed to defend his comment.

"Not that I want you to! No, I would fight the whole lot of you to protect her! I just was surprised."

Serana's look softened but maintained its edge. A partial save. Isran let a small smile creep across his face.

"Though that would be the most direct route to ensuring the safety of our sun I think it would be a poor way of doing so. Despite my distrust of it, it has proven to be a useful asset in this war. You clearly care for it and you're probably my best soldier so that makes it doubly difficult. And I don't want to risk it defecting if it somehow escape. So, no we will not kill it.

"Aw, Isran. You're getting soft aren't you. You just said she was a valuable asset. How sweet."

Tucker guffawed with his characteristic grin. Serana sighed and rolled her eyes. Isran started to sputter.

"I am NOT. I am just able to put aside my emotions for the greater good-"

"It's fine Isran. We all knew that you cared deep down."

"I do not! How dare you-"

Serana decided it was time to end this squabble before it got started.

"Boys, there will be time for this later. We have a more pressing issue."

"And what would that be?" Isran growled, clearly still incensed by Tucker's comments.

"I need to come with you to face my father and we need to use the bow to destroy him."

* * *

Another one


	3. Argument

Disclaimer: Don't own. Don't sue.

* * *

_Fort Dawnguard, A little after midnight_

Agmaer was walking into the great hall to find a midnight snack. He tended to get hungry a lot more ever since he had joined the Dawnguard. Being a farmhand was hard work but training to fight vampires was a level of taxing that he could never have imagined. So, here he was getting his late night snack of a loaf of bread, a slice of cheese, and an apple. He had to leave room for breakfast in a few hours.

Just as he was about to finish his food he heard a loud disagreement. Well, disagreement was putting it likely. It sounded like Tucker and Isran were having a contest to see who could scream out their vocal chords first. There was also a third voice, that vampire lady that Tucker had brought in! She was a bit odd, kept to herself but she seemed nice enough. Tucker was a good guy, he had been happy to join Agmaer when they first joined and if Tucker trusted her then Agmaer trusted her. Even if vampires still gave him the creeps. He heard a loud clang from where the yelling was and decided to check up on them.

* * *

_Dawnguard Main Chamber_

What Agmaer walked in on was one of the most horrifying sights he had ever seen. A hammer was on the ground and a row of maces scattered. Isran, Tucker, and the vampire lady were all screaming at the tops of their lungs.

"GOD DAMN IT ISRAN YOU SON OF A BITCH! WHY WOULD YOU THROW THAT HAMMER!"

"IT'S SYMBOLIC OF YOU THROWING AWAY THE SAFETY OF THIS REALM AND YOUR OATH TO THE DAWNGUARD!"

"WILL THE BOTH OF YOU JUST STOP IT! WE CAN TALK THIS OUT CIVILLY!"

"OH, YOU WOULD JUST LOVE TO CRAWL BACK TO DADDY WOULDN'T YOU MONSTER!"

"YOU SON OF A BITCH!"

Tucker proceeded to grab a mace from a nearby weapon rack and sling it across the room

"ME? THE SON OF A BITCH?! YOU JUST LECTURED ME ABOUT THROWING!"

"WELL IF I'M THROWING AWAY THE SAFETY OF THIS LAND, WHICH APPARENTLY I AM, THEN I MAY AS WELL ACTUALLY THROW SHIT!"

"TUCKER PLEASE STOP! WE CAN WORK THIS OUT WITH HIM!"

"THAT'S RIGHT TUCKER! LISTEN TO YOUR SEDUCTRESS! TAKE HER TO HER DADDY RIGHT NOW!"

"I NEVER SAID THAT! I JUST WANT YOU BOTH TO CALM DOWN! I KNOW THAT CASTLE INCREDIBLY WELL AND I AM NEEDED!"

"YOU'RE NEEDED WHEN I SAY YOU'RE NEEDED!"

Agmaer could see this only getting worse so he went to go get somebody that could handle this better than him.

A few moments later he returned with Dexion in tow.

"I'm sorry Mr. Evicus I just had no idea how to get them to stop. They'll listen to you."

Dexion gave a sleepy smile in the direction he thought the boy was in.

"Don't worry son. You did fine though I will need you to lead them to me."

Agmaer took Dexion's arm and led him to the trio. By now a few more members of the Dawnguard had started to watch the late-night show. By now Isran and Tucker were screaming in each other's faces, nearly nose to nose, while Serana kept shouting at them to calm down.

"YOU ABSOLUTE TROLL FUCKER"

"A MAMMOTH'S PILE OF SHIT WOULD BE A BETTER SOLDIER THAN YOU!"

"A LIMBLESS SKEEVER SUCKLING A GIANT'S TEAT WOULD BE A BETTER LEADER THAN YOU!"

"YOUR MOTHER MUST HAVE BEEN SO PROUD WHEN SHE HEARD THAT HER SON WAS ABLE TO LIGHT HIS OWN ASS ON FIRE WHENEVER HE TRIED TO USE MAGIC!"

"IT WAS ONE TIME YOU DUSTY BEARDED BASTARD!"

"YOU TWO ARE ACTING LIKE CHILDREN!"

Dexion told Agmaer to take him to Serana. He complied.

"Hello my dear. It appears there's an argument of sorts."

Serana took a second to calm down before she spoke to him.

"Yes, they're both too damn stubborn to do anything but yell."

"I think I have a solution, why don't you and Agmaer focus on taking Tucker away and I'll handle Isran."

Serana gave a grateful smile and nodded, realized he couldn't see it, then spoke.

"That sounds great, Agmaer come on, you get his right, I'll get his left."

She made sure to give Agmaer Tucker's weak side in case Tucker decided to fight back. They both put a hand on his shoulder and started to take him away.

"Come on Tucker, this isn't going to help. You need to rest for a second."

"I really respect you and I really respect Isran but the nice vampire lady is right, you've got to take a step back."

The two continued this line of soothing words as they pulled him away.

Dexion took Isran by the shoulder, at least what he thought was the shoulder and spoke quietly to him.

"Even a blind man can tell that your men and women feel uncomfortable about this. You need to set a better example and lead them. Perhaps, you and I can talk about what is going on and you and Tucker can resume your conversation in the morning or in a day."

Isran took a moment to shake off his anger and listened to more of the calming words of Dexion.

"Alright, I'm going to bed. Dawnguard! Show's over. This conversation is tabled and you are to resume your duties as usual."

Dexion took the moment to address the crowd.

"What we witnessed here tonight was just a bit too much mead, fresh battle wounds, and simple debate about the best way to cook a skeever. Personally, I would offer a third way. Slowly roasted via mage fire with a bit of sage on the side. Go back to bed now."

The crowd dispersed with mutterings of what was the best way to cook a skeever or whether one would do better to just cook anything _but_ skeever. Dexion smiled at Agmaer. At least he thought he did. He was actually just smiling at a wall but he still felt happy about it.

* * *

A bit shorter, I know. Look, these past 3 chapters have all been written in one night since I can't post a story for 12 hours after creating my account. Thanks for reading!


	4. Bath

Disclaimer: Own? No. Sue? No.

* * *

_Castle Dawnguard, 1 day post-argument_

Tucker and Isran had not spoken since their argument at Dexion's request. Isran had spent the day organizing the Dawnguard members from across Skyrim. Deciding which patrols and groups would stay with their regular duties and which ones would come to Fort Dawnguard to either join the assault force or replace the usual guards of Fort Dawnguard that were joining the assault force. This had kept him busy for the whole day.

Tucker had spent the day recuperating from his injuries. They weren't too bad, a mixture of health potions, cheese wheels, healing spells, and rest had already done wonders for him. In fact, he was pretty much all done with his recovery, he was very sore but ready to go. Of course he was going to take tonight to rest more since Isran was busy with the logistical nightmare of forming an assault force of sufficient strength while keeping enough Dawnguard at the fort and the rest of Skyrim to keep the realm safe should they fail in their assault. Even if that weren't the case Serana had been keeping him on bed rest for pretty much the entire day. He had considered trying to talk to her about not going to face her father but he knew that it was what she needed to do. He also knew that nothing he had to say would convince her and he could hardly stop her from going.

Serana, for her part, had been ensuring Tucker took it easy and insisted on helping with everything and anything that would make his recovery go by faster and helping the Dawnguard with odd jobs here and there around the fort. Couldn't hurt to try and build some rapport with the people that were going to help her murder her father and the only family she had ever known. She was currently reading a book while Tucker scarfed down another cheese wheel in his bed. Seeing that he was done she closed her book and started walking towards him.

"Alright, time for another healing session. It's been a few hours since we used a restoration spells on you. Your body should be good to go so long as we don't do too much. Then we can put you in the bath to help ease the sore muscles and you're going to bed."

Tucker smiled at her.

"Thanks, you're the best nanny ever."

Serana rolled her eyes at his comment.

"Look, I take your health seriously. If you didn't want a companion that cared so much you should have just hired a sellsword."

"Psh! Like you would have let me. As soon as we met you were insistent on travelling with me."

"I never noticed any protests from you."

Serana smirked at her comment. In fact, Tucker had seemed rather happy to have somebody along for his adventure.

"Well, I needed somebody to watch my back on this adventure and you're fun to be around."

"Thanks. Such high praise reminds me of why I follow you through blistering sunlight and freezing mountain passes."

"Well excuse me. Let me make it a bit more flowery for you."

He cleared his throat loudly and spoke in a fake eloquent voice.

"My dear Lady Serana, were it not for you I have no idea how I could have ever managed the sojourn across these frigid lands in the quest to unravel the mystery of the tyranny of the- ow! Hey! You could have warned me before you started!"

Serana smiled at Tucker's whining over the healing spell. It helped mend his bones and though it made him feel better having one's bones forcibly realigned and repaired by magic in second was hardly a comfortable experience. She was actually quite proud of herself for how well she was doing with healing spells. They were very different from her usual destruction spells but it was a nice change. Getting to repair what was damaged rather than only causing more destruction.

"Alright, alright. I think that's as much as we can do for now. Go take your bath and get to bed. Remember, if you try weapons training or smithing or anything other than a bath I will forcibly bathe you myself."

Serana felt her cheeks turn hot and turned away from Tucker at the thought of forcibly rubbing water and soap on his naked, toned body. Gods she hoped he hadn't noticed. Tucker, for his part, was equally embarrassed at the thought of her manhandling his naked body and was even more embarrassed by how enjoyable the thought was. He cleared his throat awkwardly as he got up and headed in the direction of the baths.

"Uh, yeah. I wouldn't want you to uh… do that. I shan't be long."

"You better…. not be long…. or do anything else. Um, yeah."

* * *

_Fort Dawnguard Bath_

Tucker reached for the spot on his lower back and, yet again, felt his sore muscles scream in protest which drew a pained grunt out of him.

"By the nine, damn it!"

"Hey Tucker, are you alright in there?"

He recognized it as Serana's voice which made sense since she had been forced to carry him here when he fell halfway out the door. Though he was mostly recovered he had a few bouts of pain and weakness. He was fine but she _insisted _on helping him here and waiting outside in case he needed help back to his bed.

"Yeah, I'm fine! There's just a spot that I can't quite reach."

"... Do you need help in there?"

Serana cursed herself for offering. This was probably going to make things weird between them and he would refuse and thing would just be uncomfortable.

"Uh ... sure. If you're certain."

Serana was taken aback. This was unexpected.

"But, it's okay if you feel uncomfortable or were just trying to be nice."

"No, no! I'll come in and help."

Serana walked in with a hand over her eyes.

"Uh, it's okay. I've got the bubbles covering anything uh….. you haven't seen before."

Serana opened her eyes. He really had managed to get the bubbles covering everything below his waist. He was sitting in the tub and just his torso was visible and she had seen his bare torso during their travels. Plenty of times he had to change armor or treat a wound or was just feeling warm at night. She grabbed the bar of soap next to the tub.

"Alright, where do you need it."

"My… lower back. When I try to reach-ow!"

"Alright, don't try and reach. I've got this."

Tucker felt his heart nearly stop when Serana's cool, almost cold hands touched his warm body and started rubbing the soap and water into his lower back. He could feel her hands working his tight and knotted muscles. He could feel the urge to groan growing the more she touched him. Gods did he want her to keep this up. Hell he wanted her to rub her hands across his entire body. Something that he became acutely aware of with one particular part of him.

Serana rubbed the soap and water in to the best of her abilities. She made sure to push down to try and help relieve the muscle knots she could feel. Gods, his body was so warm and his muscles were just the right balance of toned while not being frighteningly large. She was enjoying this a ton, his warmth was so nice and…. intoxicating. She knew part of it was probably vampiric instinct, he was warm and healthy and so was his blood but it was more than that. She really just _wanted _him.

The pair continued like this, each trying to maintain their composure until finally Tucker spoke up.

"Thanks Serana, I-I think I'm good now."

"O-oh! Of course! You should probably get to bed. Um, I'll step outside while you get dressed and I'll help you back."

"Yeah! That sounds excellent, um thanks! I'll be right out!"

Serana stepped outside and let out a large sigh. Gods she needed to confront whatever was going on with her when it came to him. After the coming battle she would deal with it. She needed to keep her mind on what was to come for now.

Inside the room Tucker was having much the same thoughts as he put his pants and shirt back on. By Sovngarde this woman would be the end of him if he didn't deal with his attraction to her. Oh well, that would have to wait until after they battled Harkon. That had to be his primary focus for now.

* * *

Alrighty, next chapter will be a battle I swear. The fleshing out of their relationship has taken far too long and I do apologize. Next chapter, battle for sure! I plan on getting that done by the weekend. Thanks for sticking through all of this. And please feel free to review! Also, I saw the person that followed this story and thank you so much! It means a lot! Have a good day y'all.


	5. Bloody Battle

Disclaim: :)

* * *

Tucker's back hit the brick wall hard enough to make the world spin a bit. The vampire that had slung him began to charge, screaming at the top of his lungs. Tucker continued to sway and shake his head trying to make the world stop moving. Then, at the last second before the vampire's sword would have pierced his chest, Tucker slid to the side, knocked the sword into a crevice in the wall using his shield and decapitated the vampire before he could even scream.

"By Arkay am I good!"

His back-patting would have to wait as the battle had reached its peak. The Dawnguard had only just made it into the main dining hall. The charge across the bridge had been a slog as gargoyles descended left and right on them. Their troubles only got worse once they got through the main gate and into the main dining hall. Vampires and gargoyles were swarming all over the place. Tucker estimated that they had lost about ten or fifteen soldiers so far.

A gargoyle leaped down from the balcony above and slashed at Tucker. He nimbly dodged it and slammed its face with his shield which sent the creature back. He followed up with a slash across the face with his sword which pushed it back even further and blinded it in one eye. He kept up the rhythm, dodge, bash, slash, and repeat. He was giving it his all but the damn thing wouldn't die. He suddenly felt a presence behind him and dodged to the side.

A second later and a dagger would have gone into the back of his neck. It instead stabbed the gargoyle in its only good eye. He glanced back to see a vampire with a belt full of throwing knives on her. He raised his shield to take the barrage of knives she began slinging at him. The blinded gargoyle behind him was swinging wildly around itself, smashing walls, slinging dawnguard and vampire alike away from it. He took his sword and threw it at the gargoyle. The blade imbedded itself into the beast's chest, causing it to stumble and fall onto its back.

Not able to turn his attention on the knife thrower he summoned a fireball in his hand and slung it at her. She dodged it nimbly, jumping onto a nearby table. She began to run down it throwing more and more knives as she ran towards Tucker. His shield kept catching each knife though her new angle made it much more difficult.

"How many of those damn things do you have?!"

"More than enough to kill the likes of you!" She hissed back

He noticed one of the support legs for the table she was on and, using his shield, bashed it with all of his might. The leg gave immediately and the table collapsed, causing her to lose her balance and stumble. As she tried to regain her footing a large fireball blasted her in the chest, sending her flying from the table.

"Dodge that one you vampiric-"

"BY STENDARR!"

Tucker glanced to his side to see a soldier having his blood sucked out by a vampire. He moved forward but the creature snapped the man's neck and tore its fangs out splattering blood around it and onto its face. Tucker readied his sword and shield only to realize his sword was still imbedded in a gargoyle that was behind the vampire. He beat his hand on the shield and shouted at the vampire.

"Hey you blood sucking creep! Come and take a taste of dragon blood!"

The frenzied man, no, creature, turned on Tucker and began running full pelt. Tucker used his shield to counter and brush the axe swing aside. He slammed his fist into its face, it swung its axe again and he ducked under the stroke. He slammed his shield's tip into its throat, grabbed it by the collar, and slammed his head into it, leaving it dazed and confused. _This _was why he wore the full Dawnguard helmet. Sure, it was clunky and a bit impairing but it helped a hell of a lot with stuff like that. He didn't let up though, he bashed it in the forehead with his shield, brough flames to his hand and bathed the vampire in it. It began to scream as its flesh burned, at which point Tucker slammed his shield into it again, knocking it out.

He ran to the gargoyle to retrieve his sword. Just as he reached it he was face with another vampire. He pulled the sword with all his might but it didn't budge. The vampire laughed and bared her fangs as Tucker struggled.

"What's the matter, no sword to help you."

"Look, performance issues are surprisingly common okay?"

She hissed as she swung her sword at him, causing him to move away from the sword.

"Oh come on! There's no sport in this!"

"Too bad. Don't really care for sport."

He felt a blast of lightning hit him from behind, causing him to fly forward and his shield to fly away. The vampire that had blasted him from behind drew his hand back to launch another blast but was soon decimated by a battle troll that charged him. With one threat gone Tucker focused on the hissing vampire in front of him. She brought her sword down to stab him but he rolled. She stabbed again, he rolled yet again. This game continued, stab, roll, stab, roll, until Tucker used his elbow to wrench the sword from her grasp, grabbed her ankle, and pulled her down. He picked up the sword to stab her but she kicked his stomach, causing him to drop the blade and stumble back. She stood up and readied for another round.

Tucker was unarmed and the closest weapon was his blade stuck in the gargoyle. He smirked as a plan formed. He took off his helmet and threw it at the vampire's face as he charged. She instinctively dropped her sword and caught the helmet. He kicked her back into the wall, stunning her for a second. He grabbed his sword with both hands and swung it in a wide arc over her head, decapitating her. As her head slid off her shoulders and pulled his helmet from her grasp, putting it back on.

"Thanks for holding that. You guys are so considerate."

"Tucker! Get your ass over here!" Isran barked from the balcony above.

"Yes sir!"

Just as he turned he saw the obstacle that he'd have to face to mount the stairs. A large gargoyle, the largest he'd seen so far was staring directly at him. It let loose a roar that made nearby dawnguard and vampires glance from their combat. It began to rush him. Tucker looked for his shield, it was only about ten feet away but the rate that it was advancing he decided to try his luck. He reached out his hand and did his best to use telekinesis to pull the shield to him. It flew forward awkwardly but flopped back down. He tried again but it was too late, the gargoyle slammed into him full force.

"GAH!"

He grunted as he was slammed into the wall once more. The gargoyle's assault didn't end there, it took him by the shoulders and slammed him into the wall, over and over again. He felt his blade slip from his grasp. He could swear he could hear his helmet cracking as he was repeatedly slammed full force into the brick. He tried kicking the beast but it was useless, his kicks were too weak and he was beginning to lose any ability to focus as the blunt force of the repeated slamming caused him to begin to lose consciousness.

Suddenly, an ice bolt pierced through the beast's chest causing it to let go of one of his shoulders, the other clawed hand held on though. The beast gripped at the ice bolt, surprised and trying to comprehend what had happened. This was his chance, he grabbed the wrist of the beast and put every bit of fire power he could, filling the air with burnt gargoyle flesh and causing the gargoyle to let him go. He hit the ground and nearly collapsed but held himself together enough to use telekinesis on his sword, this time focusing purely on making the handle fly to him with no fear of overdoing it. The sword followed his will and slammed into his hand. It hurt but he gripped it and slashed the gargoyle once across the face, once across the side, then the leg. The barrage of sweeps and the ice bolt in its chest caused the beast to keel over rapidly. He looked across the way and saw Serana's hand with frost emanating from it.

"Come on! Let's go to Isran! We've got to finish this!"

Tucker just nodded, grabbed his shield and followed her up the stairs. The pair used a mixture of fire, ice, lightning bolts, dodging, slashing, and hacking to get through the vampires and monsters that blocked their way. They arrived to a set of huge wooden double doors where Isran and a group of dawnguard were holding the line.

"Harkon is in there! We've got to finish this up but you two get in there and use the bow on him!" Isran handed the bow to Serana and made a point of looking her in the eye.

"I still have my doubts about the wisdom of you being here but you and him are a team that has accomplished great feats. Do not make me regret this."

She nodded and looked at Tucker.

"Come on, it's time to face my father."

Tucker readied himself.

"I can hardly wait."

Together the two opened the double doors and entered the chapel.

* * *

Author's Note: Yay! Finally got an action sequence! Feel free to tell me your thoughts on this. I never really write combat stuff so I'm very new to this. Please let me know how I am doing with it and send any tips you might have! Hope you enjoyed it. And sorry for the cliffhanger, I really wanted to get some combat for you guys and the next one is gonna have a lot of dialogue before the combat. And yeah, Tucker's combat style is very dodge, shield bash, and deflect style. It's kind of a Captain America with a sword style but far less acrobatic and not a super soldier. Also, he uses light armor but uses the heavy Dawnguard helmet cus it looks badass as hell.


	6. Vanquishing The Beast

**Disclaimer**: Owner? Nay. Sue me? No thank you.

**Author's Note**: If you want good music for this fight: _Phantom Blood: Jonathan Joestar Victory Theme_ is what I listened to while I wrote the last half.

* * *

_Castle Chapel_

Tucker and Serana burst through the doors, weapons drawn. They were met with a room that's aesthetic could only be described as professionally designed to be eerie and spooky. The room was as dark as a cavern despite having a few windows, there was a perpetual cloud of dust floating around the room, toward the back of the room was a fountain in the shape of Molag Bal spewing blood, and to top it off Harkon was floating in the middle of the room in his vampire lord form.

"So, you've returned. Is your…. pet keeping you entertained?"

He sneered at Tucker as he said this.

"You know why we're here."

"Of course I do. You disappoint me, Serana. You've taken everything I've provided for you and thrown it all away for this…. pathetic being."

"Provided for me? Are you insane? You've destroyed our family. You've killed other vampires. All over some prophecy that we barely understand. No more. I'm done with you. You will not touch him."

Serana positioned herself between Harkon and Tucker a bit more. Tucker noticed her wince a bit at the weight of what was under her cloak. He just hoped that Harkon hadn't seen it.

"So, I see this dragon has fangs. Your voice drips with the venom of your mother's influence. How alike you've become."

"No…. because unlike her I'm not afraid of you. Not anymore."

"And you. It appears I have you to thank for turning my daughter against me. I knew it was only a matter of time before she'd return with hatred in her heart."

"Hatred born of your neglect."

"A small price to pay for the betterment of our kind."

"Your kind is a blight on the world."

Tucker saw Serana's face shift for a second and felt incredibly guilty. Not the best choice of words on his part.

"Yes, yes. Always the noble vampire hunter. And what happens when you've slain me? Is Valerica next? Is Serana?"

"I would never harm Serana. She's too important to me."

"Then my daughter is truly lost. She died the moment she accepted a mortal into her life."

"Enough of this!"

"Yes, quite. I'm growing weary of speaking to you and my traitorous daughter. I'll give you a single chance to turn over the bow to me. There will not be a second."

"Never!"

"Very well! You leave me no choice!"

He blasted Tucker with his blood magic. Tucker brought up his shield and got as much of his body behind it as possible. It held, Harok managed to fire two more blasts before Serana's ice bolts forced him to focus on dodging. A few nicked him along his sides but none were managing to hit him directly. Tucker was amazed at the vampire lord's agility. How the hell was he going to get this guy. Harkon managed to fire off a shot and hit Serana with it. She let out a grunt and flew back, hitting the floor with an audible crack sound. Tucker threw aside his doubts and charged, screaming at the top of his lungs.

Harkon whipped around to see Tucker charging, he raised his hands but let out a scream as he was blasted with sunlight energy. Tucker quickly fired off three shots, each one managed to disorient him long enough for the following bolts to hit. Tucker ended the volley with Vampire's Bane, the large bolt hit Harkon squarely in the chest, causing a large explosion of light.

"ARRRRRRGH! YOU FILTHY-"

Blinded and confused, he was unaware of how much progress Tucker's charge had made, he was able to slash and land a blow on Harkon's leg. He screamed and dropped to the ground. Tucker readied to strike again but felt an impossibly powerful blow against his shield. Harkon followed up with another swipe of his left claw causing Tucker to leap back before his exposed side was sliced open. He bashed with his shield, causing Harkon to back away. He followed up with a quick stab, Harkon caught the blade in the middle with his hands, he quickly pulled both hands in opposite directions. The elven blade snapped like a twig. Tucker held his gasp, this thing was strong as hell. Harkon then slashed Tucker across the face. The helmet took the brunt but he still felt jarred from the impact. Harkon then kicked Tucker across the room.

"Gah!"

Tucker landed against a pillar and fell face first to the ground. The impact left him dazed and he coughed up what he assumed was blood. It began to slide down the inside of his helmet and down to his chin. He could hear Harkon stalking towards him and tried to get up but only stumbled and fell more as the floor continued to spin.

Serana could see her father stalking towards Tucker who was struggling to get up and was obviously winded. She put both her hands together and launched as powerful of a shard of ice as she could. She connected and Harkon screamed in rage as it impaled his shoulder. He whipped around and began to charge towards her. She started launching lightning with both hands as he charged at her. It slowed him a bit but not nearly enough.

He reached her and swiped with his right claw. She ducked out of the way. He followed up with a left swipe. She dodged yet again. She drew her knife and swung it, she got a slice across his arm. He growled with rage and quickened his pace. Serana, in turn, bobbed and weaved even faster, she sliced him across his other arm, against his side, across his bad shoulder, and she even managed to jab him in the ribs real quick. He howled as the knife plunged into one of his rib bones. The knife got stuck. She tried to pull it out but had to let go of the knife as he swung at her again.

Tucker finally managed to get to his knees and glanced where he heard the hissing of both Harkon and Serana. The two were a series of blurring motions, it was like a pair of sabre cats trying to kill each other. He gave Serana credit as being the civilized sabre cat with her punches and far less bestial form.

She was back to bobbing and weaving, having to rely on her fists now. A punch to the face, a punch to the bad shoulder that still had the ice bolt in it. She could see he was favoring the leg that Tucker had slashed. She looked at the ice bolt in his shoulder and the knife. The balcony was directly to the side of Harkon. She saw Tucker moving in the corner of her eye. Now was the time. She kicked the leg that was slowly oozing vampiric blood.

Harkon's leg crumpled and he was forced to balance on his good leg. He howled in pain. Serana quickly took hold of the knife in her left hand and the ice bolt in the right and placed her foot against his chest. She used the force to pull out the knife, swung along the ice bolt and used the swinging to do a flip onto the balcony just above them. The ice bolt tore out of his shoulder as she reached the peak of her flip. His already pained howling reached a pitch that was nearly glass shattering.

Tucker stared dumb-founded at the feat that he was certain only a master acrobat could complete. Serana snarled at him.

"Don't just stand there gawking! Blast him!"

She started running up the stairs to get out of range. Tucker put both his hands together to form as large a ball of light magic as possible and unleashed in on Harkon. The explosion was blinding but Tucker could hear Harkon's displeasure. He launched his blood magic at Tucker and transformed into bats, he flew to the altar. There he formed a strange red bubble around himself. To Tucker and Serana's amazement his wounds began to ooze less blood and flesh grew to cover the holes.

"He's healing! Quick! Use the bow!"

Tucker whipped out the bow, notched a sunhallowed arrow, and let it fly into Harkon. It got him in his bad shoulder and an explosion of light caused his bubble to literally pop. He roared in anger yet again.

"How DARE YOU!"

Tucker picked up his half broken elven blade and charged toward Harkon, screaming like a mad man. Harkon made no attempt to defend, he kept floating and merely pointed his arm at Tucker. Tucker was shocked when he began to float up in the air, paralyzed. Harkon's telekinetic powers were far greater than that of any mortal mage. He began to smash Tucker into a nearby pillar over and over again while laughing the whole time. His laughter was cut short as Serana jumped down from the balcony above, a shining blade in her hand. The blade slowly came down in a wide arc toward Harkon.

"GRAHHHHH!"

Harkon screamed loudly enough for one of the nearby windows to crack. His severed arm hit the floor at the same time Tucker did. Serana gritted her teeth as she ran over to hand the blade to Tucker.

"Here, I have my dagger. That thing burns far too much for me to use."

"Thanks for carrying it. I knew he'd be surprised if you had it."

Tucker took Dawnbreaker from Serana, who quickly removed the specialized gloves she had to wear to wield it without burning off her hands. Tucker tried not to use Dawnbreaker around Serana but he knew that this was the kind of fight he'd want to have it just in case.

Harkon stared at his stump arm and laughed.

"Serana! Perhaps you truly have become a vampire hunter. That blade has killed more of our kind than the Dawnguard in their entire history. It seems as though you wield it well."

She made no reply, just drew her dagger. Tucker readied his sword and shield. They stood side by Harkon sneered at them both.

"How sweet. The vampire hunter and the vampire that wants to help the little mortals. A team until the end. Perhaps even more."

Yet again the pair stayed silent, watching him as he floated back and forth. He had lost a lot of blood and was beginning to slur his speech. He was weakening. If they could just wait for him-

Harkon swung his remaining hand out and over, slinging Serana up and across the room. Tucker glanced for a moment as Serana went flying. This would prove to be a fatal mistake as Harkon lunged forward and sliced him across the stomach then the face. This claw swipe knocked off his helmet and cut open half of his face. Blood spurted out as he fell and rolled down the stairs, caking them in his own blood. Serana saw him go down and let out a loud shriek. Harkon laughed maniacally as his daughter ran to the fallen hero. With a quick bolt of blood magic he knocked her down yet again. Her head hit the wall, causing blood to spurt out as she cut it open. The world began to spin and grow dimmer. Harkon continued to laugh hysterically.

Despite the concussion and how close she was to passing out Serana forced herself to stand up. Harkon stopped laughing and clicked his tongue.

"Oh, dear daughter. Please, don't embarrass yourself. The two of you together might have had a slight hope against me but on your own neither of you could ever best me. Even with one arm tied behind…. well gone I suppose. Please, just give up. You removed my arm and have come closer to killing me than any other over these eons. Accept your defeat graciously."

Serana started walking towards Tucker again. Yet again her father blasted her back.

"Just give up! What do you think you could do to defeat me. You're nearly dead."

Serana glanced down at her wounds and torn clothes. She hadn't realized that he had gotten a few claw swipes in. He was right. She couldn't win. She couldn't save Tucker. She had never even gotten the chance to tell him how she felt. The world was getting darker. Maybe she should just give in. Her eyes felt so heavy. Just take a second, she could always meet Tucker in the life after-

"NO! NOT TODAY!" Serana was surprised by the power of her own voice.

Harkon merely sneered at her.

"Very well. Then let us end this dear dau-"

He paused as Serana's body began to shift and convulse. Her head lolled back. Her fangs began to grow larger. Her spine started to grow and her limbs began to lengthen and grow in size. Claws sprouted from her fingers. Her body turned red and a black mist formed around her until finally her wings burst out. Serana sneered back at Harkon in her vampire lord form.

"My, my! It has been too long since I've seen you use your true form! You really do care for this mortal."

"You will not touch him!"

Serana charged forth and tackled her father. He was caught off guard as she began to hack and slash into his already torn body. Despite her wounds Serana powered through, she had the advantage in this bestial mode. Her father had only one arm whereas she had two. Harkon tried to fight back as she viciously clawed, smacked, and bit him. The pair were truly like wild sabre cats.

Harkon knew that he would lose this battle. He shifted to blood magic and created a blast that tore the pair apart. His daughter was not to be stopped though. As soon as she stopped sliding away she charged once more slinging blood magic as Harkon ran back towards the stairs to the altar. He ignored the pain as his blood and life was snapped away by the area effects of the spells and focused on his prize: Tucker.

He picked up the limp body and held his neck close to his fangs. Serana paused. She could still hear an extremely faint heartbeat from Tucker. Harkon had his fangs at the ready to plunge into his throat.

"Stay right where you are or I'll drink him dry."

Serana paused.  
"Good, and might I say how proud I am that you are finally accepting your true form! But pride aside, I know that he does not have the bow on him so you must. Give it to me now or he dies."

Serana felt torn. She knew what Harkon would do but without her blood the bow was useless. Tucker was smart to have swapped out the bow when he took Dawnbreaker. Harkon was so focused on the sword he hadn't even noticed the bow being put on her back. She pulled the bow from her back and removed the chameleon spell she had placed on it. The bow's true light shone through in its true beauty now. She paused as she heard Tucker's heartbeat speed up for a fraction of a second. He was awake and could hear that she was about to give up the bow.

"Excellent. Now toss it over to me."

Harkon would have to let go of Tucker to catch the bow. Tucker would know this so either he had a plan, he was relying on Harkon getting the bow then the two of them getting it back, or he believed in Serana. All of these options mean that Serana's only option was to toss the bow. She threw it.

Time slowed down as Tucker heard her throw the bow. This was it. He was a centimeter from death. What he was about to do was probably going to kill him but it would give Serana the chance to kill her father. He had hoped he could do it for her. Gods, he had hoped for a lot of things related to her. But now was not the time, missed chances aside he had to follow through or they would both be dead.

Harkon could see the bow flying towards him. This was it. This silly mortal would be dead before he hit the ground. Harkon would have the bow and then he'd only have to kill his treacherous daughter and bleed her dry. Then the world would belong to vampires and his clan would be at the center. No vampire in history would ever match him.

It all happened in a split second. Tucker let the spell loose from his limp hand. Stendarr's Aura surrounded him. The circle of light around him caused Harkon's grip to loosen and his skin burned under the power of the sun. The bow flew and hit the ground as Harkon backed away. Serana began to charge forward. Tucker hit the ground at his knees. He turned toward Harkon and shouted with his last ounce of strength.

"FUS RO DAH"

The thu'um blasted Tucker back down the stairs, he rolled out of the way so Serana had a clear path. Harkon was blasted back into the fountain altar and smashed through it full force. Serana charged forward, she put the bow on her back and grabbed her father. She tore her right claws into his shoulder and grabbed his wrist with her left.

Harkon's eyes widened in horror as he realized what was about to happen. Serana pulled with all of her might until his arm came off at the shoulder, blood spurting across the entire room. She kicked him to the back wall. He screamed in agony as his blood coated the floors to the point that Serana could barely keep her footing. She drew the bow, knocked an arrow to it, and fired. The arrow plunged into her father's chest, she fired another, chest again, another, neck, another, forehead, and one last one, stomach. The series of explosions were too much. Harkon spoke in a horrified whisper.

"Serana. Your own father."

He quickly began to scream as the sunlight began to burn through his skin and bones. His skin began to peel and melt off until there was a but skeleton that then turned a bright red and turned to red ash itself. The scream he let loose was the sound of eons of planning and suffering finally coming to an end.

Serena slowly turned back to her normal self. She turned to see Tucker laying face down as the bottom of the stairs. His blood had coated the stairs and formed a pool around him. She quickly stumbled forward to try and save what was left of him though she feared the worst. She couldn't hear his heartbeat anymore. The world turned dark as she reached the stairs and she tumbled down them, landing but a foot of two away from him. Her own blood began to pool and mix with Tucker's. Harkon was finally vanquished.

* * *

**Author's Note**: So yeah. That's it. Well, not quite but that's the battle. Hope it was enjoyable! I honestly loved writing this. This was the most fun I've had writing anything in years. There will be an epilogue chapter to come. That one will be far shorter than this and will hopefully come much sooner. Sorry that this took a while, I just _really _wanted to get this right because this is one of the most epic fights in the entire game series in my opinion. I hope you've enjoyed this! And yes, there will be more arcs after this one so stay tuned! Thank you so much to the people that have followed and favorited! And thank you for the reviews! I really appreciated hearing from all of you! Have a great day!


	7. Dawnguard Epilogue: Echoes

Disclaim: None owned. Zero lawsuit.

Author's Note: I invented an infirmary room in Fort Dawnguard for this. It's somewhere on the 2nd floor and has windows. So if you're wondering where it was, it was in our imaginations all along.

* * *

_Fort Dawnguard Infirmary_

Tucker's eyes slowly opened. The world around him was pure white, there was nothing but white.

_My god. I've gone blind. Or I'm dead. But this isn't what Sovngarde looks like which means I've ended up somewhere else. Gods no! There's nowhere else I could end up!_

He began shifting around, trying to figure out where he was when he felt a familiar pair of cool hands touch either side of his face. He relaxed as the hands' owner spoke to him in a calming tone.

"Hey, you've got to take it easy. You've been out for a little bit. Half of your face was falling off so we had to wrap as much as we could. Let me get these off your eyes."

Serana's voice set Tucker at ease. Alright, he wasn't in some hellish afterlife that consisted of nothing but white blankness. Thank the gods. Then again he might be and she was just there with him. Honestly, if she was there with him that would make things infinitely less horrible. Serana finished unwrapping the bandages around his eyes and he felt a dull pain as his eyes adjusted to the light in the room. It wasn't exceedingly bright, just a few shafts of light coming in from the nearby windows but it might as well have been the sun.

"Gah. My eyes practically burn. I didn't join team amber eyes did I?"

Serana rolled her eyes.

"No, they made sure to give you a cure disease potion and a blessing every day just to be safe."

"Well damn, this sunlight is murdering me. Wait... Did you say every day I was out?"

Tucker peered at Serana as his vision's blurriness and burning began to disappear. He noticed her face seem to grow worried.

"Yeah, you've been out for the past six days."

Tucker spluttered.

"WHAT?! SIX DAYS?! HOW TH-"

He paused as he saw Serana's face begin to fall apart. A quick glance nearby showed a bed that was fairly close to his that had some of her stuff there: a spare pair of her boots, her cowl, and her dagger on the end table. She must have been spending the past few days waiting for him to wake up. Serana followed his gaze and saw the realization dawn on his face.

"Yeah, you were out for a while and…. I was so worried about you."

He could hear the pain and fear in her voice. He sat up a bit and smiled at her. He put his hands on her shoulders and drew her eyes to his.

"Hey, it's okay. I'm awake and well now, well I hurt all over but I'm feeling better. What happened?"

Serana's eyes brightened a bit and her felt her shoulders relax at his touch. She put her hands on his lap as she replied.

"Well, after you did that incredibly stupid and dangerous stunt with Stendarr's aura and your shouting."

Tucker just grinned at her. She rolled her eyes and let out a sigh.

"Fine. It worked and was clever but still dangerous and stupid as hell."

Tucker shrugged. It was a fair assessment.

"_Anyways, _after that I kind of went all out against my father. I kind of…. ripped off his remaining arm and filled him with as many sunhallowed arrows as possible. The power proved too much and he…. died."

He could detect the sadness in her voice and gave her shoulder a squeeze. She gave him a weak smile.

"And then I tried to get to you and help but I collapsed before I could help you. Thank the Gods that the other Dawnguard came in soon after that. And thankfully I had reverted back to my normal form otherwise I think they might have mistaken me for my father."

She smiled bitterly at that thought and turned away. Tucker put one of his hands over hers.

"Hey, you changing into that form saved my life. You are nothing like your father."

She turned back.

"But I am aren't I? When he cut you open and your blood coated the floor I was so panicked, I had no idea what to do! I was so sure that you were dead or going to die so I transformed and…. ripped him apart, like an animal."

"Serana, it's okay. Everybody acts like an animal in combat. That's all it is. You may have been more feral and done more damage but that's because you had stronger tools. Trust me, I've fought many a battle and a war or two. Battle is always bloody and brutal."

She shook her head and looked down.

"But, but I was _so _angry and just so _scared! _You were nearly dead!"

Serana whipped around to stare Tucker in the eye. He could see the pain in her eyes. He hadn't realized but they were red, likely from crying over the past few days.

"I couldn't even hear your heartbeat! The stairs and floor around you had been practically repainted with your blood! Your ribs were broken and torn to shreds! When they healed you they needed one of the Dawnguard to hold your guts in! I-"

Tucker cut her off by wrapping his arms around her.

Serana returned the hug and sobbed. She sobbed about everything that had happened. Being sealed away for centuries, her family falling apart, her father planning to bleed her dry for the prophecy, her mother locking her away, being a pawn to everybody she had ever known, being turned into a vampire, giving into her blood and ripping Harkon apart like an animal to save the man she loved, watching the man she loved come within a centimeter of dying and just barely being able to save him.

Tucker just held her. He knew she had been through a lot since she had been released from her entombment. This was the first time she had taken a second to try and process it all. He stroked her back soothingly. Gods he hoped this was helping. Serana's cries began to slow and eventually stop. She pulled back and smiled weakly at him.

"Sorry, there's been a lot on my mind."

He smiled back at her and cupped her face.

"Hey, it's okay. We've been through a lot."

Serana seemed to ponder this for a second.

"Yeah, we have haven't we?"

"Yeah, I can't believe we surviv-"

Serana suddenly grabbed Tucker's face and pulled his lips to hers. He grunted in surprise but responded enthusiastically. He felt her shift to where she was sitting on his lap now. He let out a light groan at the sensation and wrapped an arm around her lower back. She let out a low moan and bit down on his lip. He could feel a part of his body that was still intact respond. She broke away from the kiss and ran her hands along his bandaged chest and healing body. She traced the slight scars that were on his body, old and new. Tucker ran his hands along her back and waist, looking up into her eyes. Gods did he want this to happen. Serana had a predatory look in her eye before she leaned down and crashed their lips together again.

Tucker's hands reached to the bottom of her shirt and he yanked it off of her in one fell swoop. She let out a laugh at this. Tucker opened his mouth to say something but felt a cool finger go over his lips. She simply shook her head and winked at him as she slid the blankets off him and reached for his undergarments, the only item of clothing on him besides his bandages. Her nimble hands quickly took off the item and she slipped out of her pants. The two paused to admire each other before giving into their urges.

* * *

_Dawnguard Hallways_

Isran walked down the halls of Fort Dawnguard, giving polite nods and the occasional slightly less grim face that he reserved for when he was in an excellent mood. It had almost been a week since they had defeated Harkon and his vile court and vampire attacks were at an all-time low. Of course that was probably just the damned bloodsuckers laying low for now and operating in the shadows. Isran's face grew dark at the thought of this. The Dawnguard would have to remain ever-vigilant as the vampiric threat would never be truly gone.

Of course, it was very stunted now and that was still cause for celebration. He allowed himself a slightly less grim face at that thought. Besides, perhaps not all vampires were monsters. That vampire, Serana, that had travelled with Tucker was apparently crucial to the defeat of Harkon and she hadn't had a single bad incident so far. Perhaps a very small number of vampires could be trusted. Tucker was right all along as much as he may hate to admit. The thought of Tucker brought up a small amount of worry in Isran. The man was practically dead by the time the Dawnguard had gotten to him and Serana. Serana was fairly banged up but was better after a day or two of rest and some of those blood potions they'd found in Castle Volkihar.

But Tucker had been in and out for the past six days. Usually only awake long enough to drink broth or water and even that was a rarity. They'd had to slowly force feed him in his sleep and use magic to keep his strength up. His wounds should have killed him. Some of his innards had literally spilled out due to his ribs being broken and his torso being cut open. His face was damn near falling off. They were just barely able to put his guts back in and heal his face enough to where it wasn't going to fall off on the return trip. They'd had to keep two healers on him the entire ride back just to keep him stable. Once back they'd began much more intense healing sessions and forced healing potions down, and applied healing potion laced bandages to help the process but it was slow going.

Isran rounded the corner and saw his goal: the infirmary was just ahead. Everybody else wounded had healed enough to leave the infirmary so it was just Tucker and, of course, Serana. The woman had absolutely refused to leave his side, even though she knew that he wasn't likely to wake up any time soon. He admired her loyalty to him.

Isran heard strange noises coming from the room. A mixture of grunts and almost animalistic growls. And a rustling of sheets and creaking. By the gods! She must be feeding on him in his weakened state! What kind of plan she had he didn't know but he had to rescue his soldier before it was too late!

Isran took his hammer off his back and began to charge down the hallway, ready for combat. He charged into the room and was met with a sight that made him stop in his tracks. Isran had seen all manner of daedric horrors, evil cult rituals, and vampiric monstrosities in his years serving Stendarr and the Dawnguard but never had he seen anything as horrifying as this. Tucker and Serana were having sex in the bed, and not just any kind of sex but incredibly lustful and aggressive sex. One of the bed's posts had been ripped off and one of the legs had collapsed from the power of the movements of its occupants. The pair were truly enthralled. They didn't even notice Isran standing in the doorway, dumbfounded.

"Ah, ah, ah! GODS DAMN IT SERANA!"

"FUCK! DON'T YOU DARE STOP TUCKER! WE DID NOT GET THROUGH ALL OF THIS JUST FOR YOU TO-AH!"

Serana was holding onto the remaining bedpost and ripped it off as Tucker hit just the right spot.

"Gah, damn!"

"Ah, shit!"

"Keep going!"

"Gods above, I'll never stop."

Isran wanted to scream, yell, laugh, and cry all at the same time. He decided to settle for leaving the pair to what they were doing and quietly slipped out of the room. He shuddered at what he had seen. Their cries of pleasure and animalistic lust echoed in his mind even once he was out of earshot.

* * *

Author's Note: It's been a while. I am so sorry for how long this took. A lot of stuff happened in my personal life and it left me very unable to focus on this and I did not want to halfass this. As such I will do a final final chapter for this that will also kick off the next arc. So the next one is the beginning of the new arc and the ending of this one. Thank you for your support and patience. I really hope that you enjoyed this!


	8. Rogue Mage Beginning: Conversation

Disclaim: :P

* * *

Tucker and Serana laid next to each other, sweaty and panting. The bed shifted slightly beneath them with each ragged breath. It had been about four days since their initial "incident" and they had repeated the act a number of times over the course of the past few days. So many times in fact that the pair had lost track. Their days were a haze of a bit of training, eating, and lustfully thrusting their bodies together any chance they got. The only issue was that nobody, to their knowledge, knew about them and they had not talked about it so far.

Serana glanced at Tucker. He was still healing from the wounds inflicted during their confrontation with Harkon. Normally he healed fairly quickly but the wounds that he received were as numerous as they were grievous. His wounds were, all but two of his ribs were broken, his innards had spilled out a bit but were put back, half of his face almost fell off before it was stabilized and he nearly lost vision in his left eye but it was saved by some master healer from the College of Winterhold, he had a number of fractures and breaks in his arms and legs due to being tossed around, and he had lost enough blood that they had to dump blood potions into him to act as a the amount that he lost and stabilize him. All told he should have been dead. He did have a number of new scars though, and they were all placed in such a way that made Serana just want to kiss and lick each and every one of them.

As her eyes rolled up and down his slightly muscular frame she thought back to the activities they had been doing. By the Gods they were like a pair of rabbits in spring. Thank the Gods they didn't have to worry about pregnancy. And he was quite good at these activities too. She did worry about one point, they hadn't discussed what was going on at all. She figured that he would broach the subject of their emotions since she had broached the physical attraction but he hadn't said anything yet. She feared that this was just casual sex to him. All their adventures and bonds of fellowship aside, what kind of future could he ever envision with a creature like her? She turned her eyes back to the ceiling at this thought. Gods she was being an idiot. This whole thing was likely to end in more heartbreak for her.

At the same moment that Serana turned her gaze to the ceiling Tucker shifted his gaze to her. She was quite beautiful in the dim lighting, her light complexion and bright eyes being easily visible in the relative darkness of the room. The room was given to him by Isran once he proved himself a capable member of the Dawnguard. Tucker was never one for fancy quarters gifted to him, preferring to sleep in the barracks with the rest of the Dawnguard but he and Serana had needed some privacy for the things they were doing.

His eyes noticed a few new scars on her slender yet powerful frame. Though she hadn't been in as critical a condition as him she had taken a large amount of damage during the battle. She had lost a large amount of blood, had multiple fractures and breaks in her bones, and was mildly concussed. Of course, being a vampire she was able to bear her wounds fairly well and recover in a day or two but still. Just because she survived it didn't meant it wasn't damaging and painful. What was even more impressive was that she fought so fiercely to protect him even when she knew he was likely to die. Rather than retreat to tend to her own wounds she risked her life to save a man that was on the brink of death. He was lucky to have someone like her at his back. He bit his lip at this thought.

They had not yet discussed what their amorous activities as of late meant. He had assumed that since she was the one that initated the sex she would be the one to bring up what it meant to her but she had not yet spoken on the matter. Of course he loved the sex because _gods above _was she amazing at it but he really hoped this wasn't some casual fling with a mortal to her. He knew that this wasn't some kind of fling to him. He turned away to stare at the ceiling as he mulled this over.

"So, that was pretty good huh?"

Tucker turned to look at Serana, he was surprised that she spoke up.

"Yeah, that was pretty damn good."

Serana shifted to look at him. Tucker couldn't help but blush a bit as his eyes followed other parts of her that shifted. She took notice and flashed him a predatory smirk that got him standing at attention once more.

"Mmm. Must be pretty good if you're ready to go again."

Tucker put on his standard cocky smirk and flirted back.

"For you, I'm always at the ready."

Serana began to scootch towards him on the bed, slowly wrapping an arm around him and using her vampiric strength to quickly pull him nose to nose with her.

"You'd better. Otherwise I might just have to find other ways of using you."

"Ah, and what ways would that entail?"

"Maybe you need a demonstration."

Serana slowly pushed Tucker's head down towards the bottom of the bed, towards her lower region. Tucker followed her guiding hand and enthusiastically got to work.

_Some passionate time together later_

Both Tucker and Serana laid panting on the bed once more. Yet again they played the game of glancing at one another but never at the same time. Finally Tucker broke the silence.

"So, um. This has been ridiculously fun but do you think we should maybe talk about what this means?"

Tucker could feel himself begin to sweat as he got the words out. Serana's entire body stiffened. He was finally bringing it up. She rolled over to face him.

"Sure. I think we definitely should."

The pair stared at each other, each trying to will the other to speak their feelings first. Finally, Tucker relented under her gaze.

"Well, if I'm being honest, I am very interested in you…. in a romantic way. And, I've been trying to work up the courage to start wearing uh…. this around."

Tucker brought out an Amulet of Mara from a nearby cupboard. He smiled as charmingly as he could. He failed horribly but Serana couldn't fight the huge grin that came over her face.

"That's pretty great seeing as I'm interested in you in a romantic way too."

Tucker's worried expression relaxed and his face broke into a huge grin.

"Really? So you're interested too? That's amazing! Riften is only a few hours away! We can go there and-"

"Wait."

Tucker paused his excited planning and looked at her quizzically.

"What's wrong?"

"I said I'm interested in your romantically but I don't know if I'm ready for marriage right now. Not yet at least."

"I don't understand. This is how things have always worked in Skyrim. You aren't interested."

Serana could see Tucker's face falling and put a hand on his arm reassuringly.

"No, no! I am! I just would like to take some time and court or date like they do in other provinces. Look, I love you but I only woke up a few weeks ago and everything I know is just very confusing. I just want to hold off on a wedding until I get more settled. But I do want to be with you and only you."

She smiled warmly at him. Tucker took a moment to think and smiled back at her.

"Well, I did spend time in other regions and I have courted and dated before. It's out of the norm in Skyrim but if that's what makes you comfortable then it's the best idea."

The two smiled at each other warmly. They moved closer together to share a kiss. A loud banging sound on the door caused the pair to break apart and caused Serana to hide under the blankets. Tucker hurriedly covered his lower half and relaxed in the bed.

"Yes? Who is it?"

He hadn't even finished his sentence before Isran burst through the door.

"Look, I know you and the vampiric harlot are committing your acts of debauchery but we have an issue and we need you two right now."

Tucker felt Serana shift under the blankets and felt his own body freeze. Isran had known about the two of them the whole time? Why hadn't he said anything. He was jarred out of his musing by Isran's rough barking.

"Oh for Gods' sakes everybody has known. A minimum of ten of us have walked in on or by you two when you were going at it in every room _but_ this one. And we've _all _heard you two at least once but that doesn't matter. Some lady from the College of Winterhold came here asking for the Archmage to come down immediately and she described you to us. Says something about some rogue mage and she says this has Dawnguard interests too. So both of you get dressed and get your asses in gear. The ball has finally dropped and you're both needed once more."

Isran hurried out of the room, slamming the door behind him. Serana crept out from under the covers and exchanged a look with Tucker. This must have been some serious business. Despite technically being Archmage, the college mostly ran itself and only called Tucker for important ceremonies or when something truly dire was happening. He wasn't scheduled to visit for at least another three weeks. The only reason he was still Archmage was because they refused to let him relinquish the title even when he promised he would still help with any issues they had. The pair began to hurriedly dress. Why did things always have to turn crazy whenever they were having a moment?

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_ _Yay! They are FINALLY together. We did it. And the new arc has started! The Elder Scrolls lore is kind of conflicting when it comes to vampires and pregnancy. There was the Gray Prince in Oblivion but that was a male vampire impregnating a non-vampire female. Also the other games are kind of all over the place about it. I know of no confirmation of a female vampire having a child so, for now I'm keeping it as vampires cannot get pregnant or if they can, it is very very very rare. This may get more development in later chapters if there's interest from either y'all or me or I may leave it ambiguous. Thank you so much for all of your support. All of you that are following, favoriting, reviewing, and reading this truly make my day so thank you very much. Have a wonderful day and I can't wait to get into this new arc!_


	9. Lies

Disclaim

**AN: Invented another room**

* * *

_Fort Dawnguard Planning Room_

Tucker and Serana marched into the room, quieting the conversations that were ongoing between the mage and Dawnguard. The mage smiled at the sight of Tucker.

"Archmage! It is good to see you!"

"J'zargo, it's been too long!"

Tucker moved forward and gave the Khajit a massive bear hug. J'zargo returned the hug happily. Tucker pulled back for a second and looked him in the eye.

"How are your studies going? Are those scrolls of yours working any better yet?"

"My studies go excellently my friend. J'zargo is becoming a true master of destruction magic. My scrolls are…. still taking some work but I know I will soon unlock their true power!"

Tucker flashed a grin at the mage.

"Well just don't go burning down the college. I remember last time they just kind of exploded."

"Oh, please. J'zargo would never do such a thing. Mainly because you cannot burn down a stone building."

The pair let out a hearty laugh. Serana glanced at Isran and could see that he was growing impatient with the pair's comradery. She moved forward to catch his attention.

"And please, don't call me Archmage. I was just a student that got into a few bad situations and got luck-"

Tucker turned to the person poking him from behind. Realization dawned on his face as he looked at her then Isran.

"Well of course! J'zargo, I've been rude! This is Serana and Isran. They were the ones that I worked with to kill a bunch of vampires that wanted to destroy the sun!"

"Yes, hello. I'm Serana but Tucker-"

"Oh man. You would not believe some of the stuff I got to see. I think the College would really love to see and hear some of the things we got to do and find. We have this incredible weapon from the Snow Elves! And the Snow Elves! My Gods! They were even more advanced than we-"

"TUCKER!"

Tucker turned, mid-speech and stared at Serana.

"Yeah?"

"Maybe we should find out what your friend wants to talk about then you guys can hug, hold hands, and catch up?"

Tucker blushed a bit and stared sheepishly at the Dawnguard members staring at him in silent judgement.

"Oh, sorry. Yeah, what's going on J'zargo? What's happened?"

J'zargo's face grew grim as he withdrew a small book full of loose papers. He set it on the nearby table that had a map of Skyrim on it.

"We have been getting reports of strange magical occurrences. Skeletons being sighted on roads, familiars attacking people, atronachs wandering into towns. Normally these things can be found by rogue mages out in the wilds of Skyrim and in ruins but it's where it is happening that initially piqued our interest. It is very rare for rogue mages to operate so brazenly."

Tucker nodded and spoke up.

"Yes, normally they fear the bounties and guard raids that their magic will draw. Nords aren't overly fond of magic under the best of circumstances. Surely the holds investigated these occurrences?"

"Yes, and they were met with either no answers or resistance so heavy they rarely had survivors. The Holds had so few details of what was going on they all sent at least one messenger with their reports to us and asked for our assistance."

Tucker's eyes widened. The Holds never wanted anything to do with the College unless they needed something enchanted or… if things were dire. This must be serious.

"So, we have been investigating as best we can. We even sent a small group of battle-mages out and have been consulting mage groups across Tamriel. We have received replies from a few of them in Morrowind, Cyrodiil, Elsewhere, and Highrock. They gave us as much information as they could give with their own experiences."

The Dawnguard started to shift a bit uncomfortable. Though they were no strangers to magic this sounded like it was incredibly serious. More serious than any magic they had ever dealt with. Isran remained as stony-faced as ever.

"The reports we've received from the other mages gave us a lot more information. Their information seems to point to a powerful wizard working with a much larger network of rogue mages. He finds them, intimidates them with his superior power and forces them to join. If they do not he kills them or worse."

Tucker's face grew even more grim. Serana could hear his pulse quicken. This was really getting to him. She knew that he was fairly knowledgeable in magic but he had always described himself as lucky and good at very specific types. He did not consider himself a master by any means.

"The reports also seem to indicate that he moves around a lot. He started in Valenwood, we are still waiting for any reply from any groups or governments there, then moved through Elsweyr, then Cyrodiil, Morrowind, and, now, Skyrim. The High Rock mages have reported nothing so this means he is still operating out of Skyrim."

"Hm, any idea what's drawing him here?"

"No though many in the college suspect it may have something to do with a unique magical source in Skyrim."

"Any idea what the source might be?"

"Well, you. You use the dragon shouts. That is an ancient and powerful magic. And very unique. You also only reside in Skyrim and he has only surfaced in Skyrim recently. Only a few months after you defeated Alduin."

Tucker paused. Serana looked at him worriedly. J'zargo stared, grim faced. Isran's eyes darted between Tucker and J'zargo.

"So what? He wants to run experiments on me? He wants to figure out how to use me?"

"Currently we do not know. This is only a hypothesis."

Tucker stroked his chin, deep in thought. Serana always wondered if he used to have a beard when he did that or if he had just forgotten to shave that day. Well, stubble or not she knew she wanted to spend the evening licking his jawline before they headed off on another dangerous quest. And finish talking about what they meant to each other. Serana got her attention focused back on the mage and Tucker as they discussed their next move.

"Alright, so you want me to act as bait?"

"Well, we have a few plans in the works back at the College."

Serana heard a loud sigh from behind her as Isran stepped forward.

"Alright Jezargo."

"J'zargo sir."

"Yeah, that's what I said. Jezargo."

Tucker shook his head along with J'zargo.

"No, no, it's pronounced J'zargo."

"That's what I said! Jazargo!"

One of the Dawnguard members shook their head as well.

"Sorry sir, not quite. It's J'zargo."

"GODS BE DAMNED GET BACK IN LINE!"

The young man hurriedly returned to his place by the side of the other Dawnguard.

"Look…. Mage. You said that this involved vampires and that you needed our help. How do the vampires fit into all this and where does the Dawnguard fit into this plan?"

J'zargo shrugged.

"There are no vampires as far as we know. I lied. I just needed to get in to speak with Tucker and the guys at the front gate wouldn't listen to me about the mage part. So I added a vampire part."

Isran's face soured and he began to splutter

"You think that this, how dare you, THE DAWNGUARD-"

"Hang on Isran. Sorry for the deception but if he really needed to get this info to me it makes sense. This may not be a Dawnguard concern but this is a Mages College concern and I owe my loyalty to them as well."

"Now hang on-"

"Look, you guys have the vampiric threat under control. Sure there are some left but is it world shattering?"

"You and I both know that these fiends could easily reorganize and start up their special kind of evil again."

Tucker nodded thoughtfully. Serana moved forward to chime in.

"Speaking as the only vampire in the room and the one that watched my father take control of the vampires I can assure you it will likely take a while. Sure there will be pockets of organized groups but nothing like what my father had. Leadership on that level requires a certain kind of power that takes a long time to gain. If anybody has the power to unite the vampires into a coherent force it would be this mage. If he's slowly forcing rogue mages across Tamriel to join him then how long will it take before he decides to bolster his ranks with vampires?"

The Dawnguard all stood silently, even Isran, as they mulled it over. Tucker smiled at Serana, she flashed a grin back at him. Isran began to nod slowly, as if the idea were his.

"Yes, yes. That's a good point. Very well. Tucker, go and handle this mage, we'll handle the vampires. But if he gets involved with any vampires I expect you to inform us as soon as you find out."

Tucker patted Isran on the shoulder.

"Of course I'll let you know."

Isran nodded at that.

"Good, good. Then I suppose I will leave you three to work out your travel plans. The rest of us are going to go and get some rest. Dawnguard! Back to it!"

Before he left he moved forward and gripped J'zargo by the collar of his robes.

"And whatever you do, do _not _lie and create a false idea of the vampire threat or I might get the idea that you're working with them."

He began to leave the room. He nodded to Tucker and Serana.

"Good luck you two. Be careful, I'd hate to lose you two."

Serana was shocked that he included her in that but was pleased nonetheless. Tucker felt a grin grow on his face, Isran was finally seeing Serana the way he saw her. Well, hopefully not the _exact _same way. The pair turned to J'zargo.

"Alrighty, so what's the plan?"

"We can go over a few of the ideas on the way back to the College. This requires multiple voices to properly make a decision. Besides, one of the areas we tracked a group of his mages is up by Winterhold."

"When do we leave?"

"As soon as possible. This issue is escalating quickly. We should leave by dawn tomorrow."

The pair glanced at each other. Serana was the one to speak.

"Alright, that gives us enough time. We'll see you in the morning then."

"Excellent. Would it be alright to sleep here?"

Tucker waved his hand.

"Please, it'll be no trouble. I doubt Isran could really make an argument against you taking a spare bed."

* * *

**AN: Thank you so much for all the reviews, follows, favorites, and support. It means the world to me! And yay! We've started the next arc! I've had a lot of time to sit on this so I've got some great ideas with this!**


	10. Planning (And an Update)

**Disclaimed**

* * *

_College of Winterhold, Late at night_

Tucker sighed and ran his hand across his face, looking in the mirror if he had shaved properly. Serana lay in the Archmage's bed as he spoke to her.

"Well that briefing really put me in a good mood."

"I know it wasn't the best but it could have been worse."

"How so?"

Serana paused and rubbed her chin as she thought of a positive from the briefing they had just gotten back from. It was a briefing from all the senior heads of the college. Their report was…. less than encouraging.

"I know! They haven't reported any members of the College dying yet!"

Tucker gave her a sideways glance.

"Emphasis on _yet. _From what they're saying, it sounds like this is going to end in a bloodbath."

Serana got out of the bed and padded towards him. She began to stroke his bare shoulders. He groaned in reply. She could feel the tightness of his muscles, likely caused by the stress of the past day or two. They had travelled here all the way from Fort Dawnguard. They arrived late at night and were instantly dragged into an emergency briefing then they came to the Archmage's room for a night of rest before a plan was chosen.

Tucker sighed as she rubbed his muscles. Gods did she know how to control him with just her hands. His mind raced with the different plans that were being proposed, most all of them involved some group of mages and soldiers going to one of the sites that were thought to be a base of operations, raiding it, and trying to find more information. They didn't even have a name on the mage for gods' sakes. They were fairly certain that it was one mage as the leader but who knows? If there wasn't a definitive name then for all they knew it could be a group of mages masquerading as one singular mage. Gods be damned, this was getting far too-

"Tucker!"

Tucker turned and stared at Serana. She had a worried look on her face.

"Yeah?"

"You've been zoned out for the past few minutes. I said your name nearly six times. Are you okay?"

Tucker shrugged and began moving towards the bed.

"Sure, sure. I'm fine. I just need some rest is all."

Serana wasn't buying this. She grabbed his arm, her strength holding him from moving any further.

"Oh no you don't. I know when something is bothering you. We're going to talk. Come on, sit down."

She practically dragged him to the bed and forced him to sit on the side then plopped down next to him.

"Serana, really, I'm-"

"No. You've had that worried expression since J'zargo showed up at Fort Dawnguard. Something is bothering you and you are _going _to talk with me about it."

Tucker let out a sigh of defeat.

"Alright, you're right. I just, it's just so-"

He stumbled over his words. Serana stared at him with an expectant look.

"It's just so frustrating and stressful to deal with huge magical threats when I'm just a simple spellsword. I've never been some amazing mage, the magic I learned was always purely out of convenience. Restoration magic to heal wounds in battle and turn the undead, destruction to burn away creatures and keep warm in Skyrim, then odds and ends here and there for battle. I was never great magical theory or just doing magic in its own right. I just use it as an aid in battle. I just don't get why they want me to be Arch-mage and how they expect me to decide on a plan of action for this"

Serana sighed and put an arm around him.

"You _do _know that they know all of that about you right? You came here to learn and it takes years, if not decades, to master magic. You were here for a few weeks or months and they made you arch-mage. You _are _good at magic but not that good. They put you in this role because they could tell that, understanding theories or not, you were somebody that could get things done. You could take action and solve issues that all of them couldn't. They may have a vast knowledge of how magic works and its many intricate theories while you're just a novice but they are absolutely lost when it comes to actually taking action and applying this outside of the classroom. Don't get me wrong, they are very capable mages but planning a shadow war? Or any kind of extended battle? This is a college, not the Imperial Legion. And who's the Legate here?"

Tucker replied in a small voice.

"Me."

"Exactly! That's the point Tucker! You are not some master wizard because that isn't what they need. They have four or five master wizards and likely know a ton more. What they need is a tactical mind and a leader. Somebody who can deal with the unknown because despite all their knowledge they know precious little about this guy and his group right?"

Tucker nodded.

"You have a long list of problems that you've handled. You've slayed countless dragons and the Nord god of death when nobody knew what to do with that. You fought in, and ended the Civil War in Skyrim. You took on a clan of thousand year old vampires with a ragtag group of reformed vampire hunters and came out on top. You have interacted with and pleased countless Daedric Lords while defying plenty of others. You are a master of dealing with the unknown and unexpected. You have zero qualifications for most of the things you take on but you find a way. Because you are a hero, a leader, and a brilliant tactical mind."

Serana paused her speech to see how he was taking it. He was silent for a bit as he processed all that was said before he let a small grin take over his face.

"Hey Serana?"

"Yeah?"

"You are literally the best and I hope you know that."

Serana smiled and kissed him.

"I know."

A wicked grin crossed her face as she moved closer to kiss him on the cheek. As she kissed his cheek she caught his ear with her teeth and breathily whispered into it.

"But why don't you do your best to show me just how amazing I am?"

Not waiting for his reply she grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him on top of her.

* * *

_**LONG **_**Author's Note: Hello! I apologize for how long this took. I have been doing a lot of planning and I go in for a month of training in a week for a new job. It'll be 8 am to 9 pm every day until after the 20th so updates will be unlikely until after the 20th at the earliest. But I do hope to get at least one chapter out in that time! I'll have to adjust to balancing my original job, the new job, and new class schedule but I should get the hang of it pretty quick. And maybe writing for classes will help invigorate me to write some fun stuff like this too! But do not expect anything, I do apologize. Also, thank you so much for your reviews! You guys are definitely right, I always have a ton of grammar and spelling issues. From this point forward I will make sure to double my checks over my work. I always get so excited that I just post hot off the press which is a poor idea. Thank you for bringing that to my attention. Also, I have the rest of this arc planned out and BOY AM I EXCITED! My main issue is just connecting it up because once we get into the action of this arc it will be fast and easy to write because I have the last 50% percent of it fully planned out. Right now we're at the 20-25% area so it's just connecting up to that point that is gonna take a while. I am so pumped though because this idea has been in my head since we got halfway through the Dawnguard arc. Your support, critiques, reviews, and follows mean the world to me! (Also, pregnancy arc is definitely an idea I have. Still have to mull over how to do it and when to do it so if you have any interest in that do make sure to express it. I plan to do it but voicing your interest will definitely let me know to focus in on it more.) Have a wonderful day!**


End file.
